Gaithersburg, MD Fence Regulations: Height Limits (2026)

13. Along a public or private street, as those terms are defined in Chapters 19 and 20 of the City Code, no fence or screen wall may exceed 3 feet in the front yard or along the road frontage, and 6 feet in the rear or side yard, though the city manager or designee can approve a taller fence upon finding it will not create a hazard to vehicular or pedestrian traffic. Corner lots carry a tighter visibility rule: no fence or screen wall may exceed 3 feet, measured from the ground surface next to the fence, for a distance of 25 feet from the intersection, and the code states flatly that a waiver cannot be granted to this provision, the only fence rule in the section marked non-waivable.

Retaining walls are the sole exception written into that corner-lot triangle, permitted where changes in street grade, width, or alignment make them necessary. Along interior side and rear property lines between different lots, parcels, or tracts, no fence or wall may exceed 6 feet, though the city manager or designee may approve something taller upon finding it will not be detrimental to public health, safety, and general welfare. Separately, fences are exempt from the building permit requirement under the residential code's work-exempt list (section 5-5(6)) unless the fence is over 7 feet high or encloses a swimming pool, which is a different, lower trigger than the 3-foot and 6-foot height caps that govern where a fence can legally stand.